It saves around 60% of gas used during cooking and is ideal for eating joints

Device aims at utilising the flames that otherwise go to waste

Activist Vijay Kumar Hegde from Udupi demonstrated an innovative eco-friendly three-in-one gadget, a tawa, steam boiler and oven, at Udupi on Saturday.Speaking to Bangalore Mirror, Vijay Hegde, chairman of Susi Global Research Centre in Udupi who invented the product said he calls this device a “gas saving oven with dosa plate”. It saves about 60 per cent of the gas used during cooking and is ideal for hotels, he said.

“Our research revealed that during cooking, the flame touches the utensil to the tune of 35-40 per cent and the balance goes out in the air as waste (almost 60 per cent). We have converted the wasted flame with the help of a device to generate steam from which food items such as rice can be cooked with no extra cost,” he said.

Vijay Kumar Hegde is also the state president of the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Andolana Samithi.

He said across India, there are about 25-30 lakh hotels operating in different standards. At a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is stressing on Make in India and innovation, if at least 7.5 lakh hotels start using this special oven, each hotel would save at least Rs 600 per day and the average saving for the entire nation would be around Rs 16,000 crore per year, he said.

Speaking about the advantages of the device, he said that with the installation of this oven, about 60 per cent of the temperature and carbon emission is reduced. The power used by chimney/duct can be reduced. Gas and steam cooking can be undertaken at the same time, thus saving cooking time and kitchen space. It gives relief from gas shortage and is easy to operate, he said.

The device costs about Rs 75,000 plus taxes.

Patent is pending on the device. Prior to this, Hegde has also experimented with generating power from tidal waves, wind and solar.

Hegde has worked on this project for nearly 10 years. “Several trial and error methods have gone into making the final product. Until I was satisfied about its working, I did not make a public demonstration. However, a few of my friends in Kota (Udupi), Vijayapura, Bengaluru and Shivamogga have already installed this oven in their hotels,” he said. Chandrashekar, owner of Shri Meenakshi Bhavan, a hotel in Shivamogga, said, “It has been almost a year since I installed this unit and we have certainly brought down the costs. We no longer need a separate gadget for steaming.“